My 2 pennies worth.

Steve Vai: ( He played for Zappa at the ripe old age of 19. Are you kidding me ? ) He was  listed in the liner notes as Impossible guitar parts and stunt guitar, by Frank Zappa.

Randy Rhoads: ( Not necessarily the cleanest player out there but at the time he was doing things no one else was ) ( Career cut WAY to short by his untimely death. )

Darrel Abbot ( Dimebag ) : Frigging woke the metal world up with a new sound and different style.  Some of the best solo's I've ever heard. ) Brilliant.

Dave Mustaine : Highly underrated and a frigging genius as far as song writing goes. ( Don't believe me ? Try playing Lucretia . ) Holy Wars/ Punishment Due is composed as well as almost anything I can think of.

Many others but if I HAD to choose just 4,. I would gladly take the ability to play like any of them. I put Steve Vai at the top of this list because I KNOW he could play any of the others stuff.

Edited March 29, 201510 yr by Attitude
Because I'm yet to perfect a post on the first attempt.

Alvin Lee

Rory Gallagher

Gary Moore

David Gilmour

I'll go with ...

 

Jimmy Page

Brian May

Nuno Bettencourt

Michael Schenker

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Well...

As much as people are very eager to write in their favorite guitar players in this thread...  :lol:

(Yup, we're all entitled to our own opinions)

 

I live in the Rushmore state.

Mt. Rushmore is Gutzon Borglum's memorial to those early presidents that made a difference in the beginnings of the US.

So working on that "theme"....  ;)

 

Les Paul - Early pioneer in the creation of the solid body electric guitar.  Without his contribution, and early recorded music with wife Mary Ford, we wouldn't HAVE the instrument or the sound.

 

Robert Johnson  - There are only 29 known recorded songs of his brief legacy.  However Robert Leroy Johnson's music is THE beginning of blues and rock music.  All of the branches of the Rock family tree lead directly back to him.  Died at age 27.

 

Chuck Berry - Early Rock and Roll pioneer. That signature sound and riffs that are still being copied to this day.  One of the reasons he was among the first inductees into the "Rock and Roll Hall of Fame".

 

Jimi Hendrix - Most influential electric guitarist in the history of Rock music.  Enough said.  Died at age 27.

 

No offense, but everyone else owes everything back to these four guys. 

Even my favorite guitar player, Stevie Ray Vaughn. 

That's my opinion anyway for what it's worth. :)

Sorry to go slightly off topic here...

 

I'll go with ...

 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

 

LOL, boy any suggestions of adding him to the rock face of "The Six Grandfathers" usually stirs up a hornet's nest.

But I agree, I have always felt we should cough up the money and put him up there with the four others, based on him lifting the country out of a very dark time, politics and life aside, like Lincoln.

Django Reinhardt and 3 other guys

In no particular order

 

Jimi Hendrix
Angus Young

B.B.King
Chuck Berry

 

Special mention - Slash

 

Have to have B.B.King in there, my first choice for the blues, Chuck Berry for the 'Rock Revolution', Hendrix.... please, I don't need a reason, just Hendrix ;) , Angus Young, now he's a hard one, but the way he plays (and acts) on stage is pretty unique.

 

tris

Brian May

Nuno Bettencourt

Tony Iommi

Richie Blackmore

Yardbirds' Jimmy Page
'69 Jimmy Page
'73 Jimmy Page
'75 Jimmy Page

But aside from the laughs here are the real 4 (in no particular order):
Jimmy Page
Jeff Beck
Eddie Van Halen
Jimi Hendrix

Honorable mention: Gary Moore

David Gilmour

Jimi Hendrix

George Harrison

Keith Richards

 

Also, hi Customsforge.

Chris DeGarmo

Nuno Bettencourt

Randy Rhoads

Jimmy Page

There are just too many. I would have to do it by genre..... In no particular order

 

Rock

EVH

Jimmy Page

Joe Perry

 

 

Blues

Robben Ford

Buddy Guy

EC

 

Jazz

Pat Metheney

Al DiMeola

Paco De Luca

 

.............................................. the fourth, Why me of course..... if and when I actually lean to play!

How about:

 

Slash

Paige

Ace Frehley

Joe Perry

Well, here is my top 4.

 

Steve Howe

Jorma Kaukonen

David Gilmour

Jimi Hendrix

 

 

Some other favorites that I'd put up if I could would be:

 

Mick Ralphs

Jimmy Page

annd.....yea the list would be a little too long, so I'll stop here. xD

Man, this is difficult...

 

Martin Tielli

David Gilmour

B.B. King

...and my buddy Jay.

SRV,Mike McCready, Satriani and Eddie Van Halen (is it me or is he completely unplayable)

In No particular order;

 

Nuno Bettencourt

Jimi Page

Les Paul

Tommy Emmanuel

For me it would be

Rory Gallagher; Gary Moore; Phil Lynott and Brian Downey on drums, no bias there at all  ^_^

 

I suppose if you where to take away those influences I would be left with, in no particular order

Ritchie Valens, Tony IommI, Angus Young and Mark Knopfler

 

 

Jimmy Hendrix by far the Greatest Ever   Jimmy Page Genius.   Stevie Ray Vaughn and the greatest songwriter, Guitar player Punk ass old Man Pete Townshend ... FIrst mention   REAlly MAn has written like 50 years of greatest Rock n Roll Tommy, Live and Leeds, WHO's Next, Quadrophenia, Late 60 and early 70 greatest LIve act to see. and of course my Best Ass KIcking member of the Who and friend Simon Townshend   I am very bias  lol 

1. Chris DeGarmo (Queensryche)

2. George Lynch (Dokken, Lynch Mob)

3. David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)

4. Gary Moore (solo career)

5. Ritchie Blackmore (Deep Purple, Rainbow)

5. Ritchie Sambora (Bon Jovi)

6. Steve Morse (Deep Purple)

7. Mick Jones (Foreigner)

8. John Norum (Europe)

9. Joe Bonamassa (solo career)

10. Ken Hammer (Pretty Maids)

11. Matthew Bellamy (Muse)

12. Synyster Gates (Doesn't matter if you dont like avenged sevenfold, synyster gates is a great guitarist even by himself)

 

Lots more, but these are my go-to favourite guitarists.